5 Reasons The Golden State Warriors Will Win The NBA Title

The Warriors and the Cavaliers is the matchup everyone’s all been waiting for, but here are 5 reasons why the Warriors will win the NBA finals.

HARTFORD, CT | Finally. The match up that most analysts predicted would happen is happening. The series that NBA fans want to see will be seen. The best team in the league will compete against the best player in the league. For the next week, media outlets will be buzzing with predictions and breakdowns of the Golden State Warriors facing off against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals (and this one is no different. Although there is plenty of time until the start of the finals to evaluate both teams, there really isn’t a need to wait that long to come to the conclusion that the Warriors will win this series. Here are five reasons why:

Warriors Don’t Lose At Home

Home court advantage isn’t really an advantage against good teams as good teams can win on the road. The Cavaliers have done that this postseason winning two games in Boston, two games in Chicago and two games in Atlanta; none of those stadiums compare to playing in Oakland. Oracle Arena is often referred to as the 12th Man of basketball, equating the noise level to that of the Century Link in Seattle. But more importantly, the Warriors are 39-2 in that building.

The Depth of Golden State’s Roster

The Warriors have a deep bench and they are playing as well as anyone can ask for. Yes, Cleveland has some solid players coming off their bench as well, but are pretty limited past Matthew Dellavedova, J.R. Smith and James Jones. Shawn Marion, Mike Miller, and Kendrick Perkins haven’t offered much of anything in this postseason. Meanwhile, Coach Steve Kerr is comfortable using Leandro Barbosa, Shaun Livingston, Festus Ezeli, and David Lee (if necessary). And let’s not forget how much of an impact Andre Iguodala is making coming off the bench. Speaking of Iguodala, that leads to reason number three.

Warriors Defense is Best in the Business

Cleveland has played lights out defensively this postseason and there is absolutely no denying that, but sometimes the Warriors’ defense is overshadowed by their high-powered offense. Yes they are jump-shooting team similar to the Hawks that the Cavaliers defended well on the perimeter. But this isn’t’ the East. And this isn’t’ Atlanta. Aside from housing 1st All-Defense player Draymond Green and 2nd All-Defense player Iguodala, Golden State also had the best defense in the league, something the Hawks most certainly did not have.

Many over the last few days have criticized the performance of Rockets’ James Harden in the Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals, but realistically it was the defense of the Warriors that deserves more credit for the loss than Harden deserves blame. With the switch between Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes guarding Harden, the MVP runner up was forced into a career high of 13 turnovers (which also sets a league record for the most turnovers in a playoff game) and was only shooting 18% from the field. Now James Harden is NO LeBron James. And chances are no one is stopping James. But, Kerr has an array of players he could throw at James to contain him or at least slow him down including Green who led the league in forced turnovers in the post.

Kyrie Irving Won’t Be Healthy

Among the most imperative advantages to have, the Warriors have the most important one: health. Stephen Curry took quite a tumble the other night and has been suffering with a sore right side and Klay Thompson had concussion like symptoms after Wednesday’s contest, but in the end, both players are still healthier than Kyrie Irving. Irving needs the tendinitis in his knee to clear up as much as possible with a week of rest and treatment and although he will be better he won’t be 100%, and that hurts the Cavaliers. James can’t do it alone (remember the last time he tried—2007 Finals—it didn’t end to well).

No One Is Stopping the MVP

If Irving were healthy, he and Curry would offset. Irving is just as capable of dominating a game as Curry is. Both are skilled ball handlers and two of the sickest shooters in the league. But that ain’t happening. Curry is too fast and much healthier than Irving. So even if he does play, how effective will he be on Curry? Certainly, Irving can’t check Thompson or Barnes, as both those guys would put more pounding on Irving’s knee than the Cleveland would like. If Irving is not able to put pressure on Curry, that leaves the job up to Dellavedoava. As well as the backup guard has played in Irving’s absence; he is no match for Curry. Curry will surely show him what taking someone’s ankles out really looks like.

It should be an interesting series. Cleveland has the right mix of players to make this series one of great entertainment. But James and co. will have to be patient a little longer, because the Warriors are bringing greatness back to the Bay.